Why Study Art History?

    As an art history minor, you connect to every field imaginable, exploring religious beliefs, political ideals and human rights, and philosophical principles. You understand art history as a universal language and a global business. To discuss it, we speak multiple languages; to preserve it, we study mathematics, chemistry, and geology. Art History opens the infinitely complex world to you as you discover the creative spirit, the force that makes us human.

    Why Study Art History at MMC?

    New York City—the capital of the art world, the site of the greatest works of art, the most cutting-edge exhibitions, the most exciting contemporary artists and architects—is your extended classroom at MMC. You’ll examine art in person when your classes meet at museums and art galleries: Egyptian statues and Impressionist paintings at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, medieval stained-glass windows at the Cloisters, Renaissance paintings at the Frick Collection, pop art at the Museum of Modern Art, contemporary art in Chelsea and Brooklyn galleries, and contemporary sculpture on the streets of the city. You’ll live among buildings by brilliant modern architects such as Frank Lloyd Wright and Frank Gehry and women pioneers in architecture such as Katharine C. Budd and Theodate Pope Riddle. In short, you’ll see, study, and enjoy more works of art in your four years than most people do in their lifetimes. 

    What You Will Learn

    • A great deal of the history of art, the materials of art, and aesthetic practices
    • How to analyze and interpret works of art in writing and through public expression
    • How art relates to world history and contemporary culture
    • How to prepare yourself for a career in art-related professions such as curator, museum administrator/director, registrar, collections manager, art/antique dealer, auctioneer, auction house specialist, authenticator, teacher/professor, art critic/writer, art librarian, visual resources director, fundraiser and publicist for the arts, art editor, art conservator, art therapist, art lawyer, and artist’s representative
    • How to advocate for the arts, art preservation, and art conservation.

    Contact

    Department of Art and Art History

    (212) 517-0694
    art@mmm.edu

    Art
    Carson Hall, 700A

    Art History
    Carson Hall, 704

    Program Highlights

    Kate Cheney '20 in Cyprus

    Students hold internships at local NYC art institutions—museums, art galleries, historical societies, and art-related businesses—where you put to work the skills and knowledge you have developed in the classroom, and gain invaluable experience that helps you to secure full-time employment after—and occasionally before—graduation.

    Art History Visual Arts Abroad

    Students often study abroad at such institutions as Columbia University’s Reid Hall in Paris, the Scuola Lorenzo de’ Medici in Florence, International Studies Institute in Florence, and the Poggio Civitate Archaeological Field School (near Siena, Italy). You may also enroll in ART 288: Visual ArtsAbroad, an experiential Art History course held every other January in such cities as Rome, Florence, Venice, Paris, and Athens. Often co-taught with faculty from other disciplines, this course gives you an unforgettable, interdisciplinary perspective on world art history.

    Prof. Rosenfeld leading virtual and in-person students through a tour of the Sean Kelly Gallery.

    Students take two Surveys of Western Art (Prehistoric art through Late Gothic art; Late Gothic through Contemporary art). You’ll study either ancient and classical art or medieval art (or both); Renaissance and Baroque art; modern art, American art, or the history of photography; art from 1945 to the present; non-Western or indigenous art; and art theory or arts management. You refine your writing, analytic, and public speaking skills in the Sophomore Art History Seminar and the Senior Art History Seminar. Qualified majors pursue Honors in Art History.

    • I chose MMC because the faculty understood the value of a small community that fostered intimate relationships between students and educators. I would have never had this kind of success had it not been for the environment that was provided by the College and the prestigious educators they employ.

      Elizabeth Goodridge ’11

      Class of 2011, Major in Art History

      Meet Elizabeth
    • MMC’s close proximity to museums like the Metropolitan Museum of Art allows for courses to be held in front of works of art, which, as an Art History student, was incredibly important and rewarding to me. Because of the small size of the program, the professors are aware of their students’ interests and are always on the lookout for new learning opportunities for each of them.

      Lauren Walter ’10

      Class of 2010, Major in Art History

    • Although I majored in Communication Arts, it was Prof. Bell’s Survey of Western Art I course that triggered my interest in building a career in the arts. [As a Teaching Assistant at The New School for Social Research], I hope to get my students as interested in the subject as I was when I took my Art History classes at MMC.

      Natalia Tuero ’14

      Class 2014, Major in Communication Arts, Minor in Art History and Photography

      Meet Natalia
    1 of 1

    Careers and Outcomes

    Careers

    • Curator
    • Graphic Designer
    • Museum Director
    • Registrar and Gallery Manager
    • Director of Artist Projects, and many more!

    Employers

    • The Metropolitan Museum of Art
    • Akron Art Museum
    • BlueSwitch
    • Marlborough Chelsea Gallery
    • Moeller Fine Art
    • Paul Kasmin Gallery
    • The New-York Historical Society

    Judith Mara Carson Center for Visual Arts

    Coming to MMC in Fall 2022, the visual arts center is designed with your educational needs in mind. Beautiful, light-filled spaces inspire and energize your imagination. Featuring light-filled fully equipped art and photography studios; a digital immersion project room; an art history resource center and classroom; and a communal hub to host events, connect with friends, or just hang out. Put your creativity front and center. 

    Visualize yourself here

    In recent years, Art History alumni have entered into and/or completed the following national and international academic programs:

    Domestic Programs

    • M.A., Art History, American University
    • M.A., Art History, Hunter College
    • M.A., Museum Studies, City College of the City of New York
    • M.A., Museum Studies, Johns Hopkins University
    • M.A., Behavioral Clinical Psychology, Cal State North Ridge
    • M.A., Early Childhood Education, Bank Street College of Education
    • M.A., Visual Arts Administration, Steinhart School, New York University
    • MSW, Columbia University
    • MSW/Art Therapy, Tulane University
    • JD, Suffolk Law School
    • Ph.D., Art History, Princeton University
    • Ph.D., Art History, University of Maryland

    International

    • M.A., Victorian Studies, Birbeck University, London
    • M.A., History of Art and the Art Market, Modern and Contemporary Art, Christie’s
    • M.A., Contemporary Art, Sotheby’s
    • M.A., History of British Art at The University of York
    • M. Phil., Medieval History, Trinity College, Dublin
    • Certificate program in Medieval Studies, Catholic University
    • Postgraduate Diploma in the Conservation of Easel Paintings, Courtauld Institute of Art
    • Programme Histoire de l’art et droit, University of Assas, Paris
    • SACI Art Conservation Post-Baccalaureate program, Florence, Italy

    Start your journey today.

    Learn more about the application process, take a virtual tour, and chat with current students right from the comfort of your home.
    Visit opportunitiesStart your application